The Book Thief- Entry #4

The protagonists of the books Sarah’s Key and The Book Thief both lived during the horrible events of the Holocaust. They were both little girls, age 10, but went through very different experiences. The main character of Sarah’s Key, Sarah, lived in Paris. She was Jewish. One night, she was taken away as part of the Vel’ d’Hiv roundup that took place in 1942. She was lucky enough to escape the Concentration Camp and ended up with an old couple, who took her in as their daughter. In The Book Thief, the protagonist is a girl names Liesel, who lived in Germany. She supported Hitler, though didn’t know much about him, or what he did. She didn’t have very strong opinions of him. She wasn’t affected much by the Holocaust until her father allows a Jew to live in their basement. We don’t know the outcome, but it will probably become a big part of the story and change Liesel’s opinions on a lot of things.

            As people, Sarah and Liesel are very much alike. At the beginning of both stories, the protagonists start out as innocent little girls who are very naïve. Neither of them knew the horrors of the years to come and what they would have to go through. They also share their love and dedication to their family. In Sarah’s Key, Sarah risks her life to try to save her little brother, who she locked in the cupboard in their house. In an attempt to save her brother, she escapes the Concentration Camp, and forces her new parents to take her to Paris to free him. In The Book Thief, Liesel’s mother gives her away to her foster family, with no explanation. After close to a year with no word from her, the girl sends her multiple letters. Even though she gets no response, she keeps sending them until she realizes that her mom will never recieve those letters. Both of the girls are brave and mature, too. When Sarah was sent to the Concentration Camp, and even after she was separated from her parents, she stayed strong and acted much older than her age. And, she makes the life-threatening decision to escape the Camp, making it out alive. Liesel was strong too. At school, she couldn’t read as well as the other kids, and was made fun of. When one of the kids laughed at her, she beat him up. Also, she steals things, risking her life. But she almost never gets caught.

            When both Sarah and Liesel make the decision to do those brave acts, they had much motivation to do so. The main motivation in Sarah’s case was her family. She escaped from the Camp because she wanted strongly to rescue her brother and see him alive. In Liesel’s life, she stole things such as food because she is poor and sometimes hungry. Her motivation to steal books, though, is her love for reading and her desire to learn how to read better. For both of them, they did things like lie or act strong, for their families, to show that they shouldn’t be worried.